Tropical Apple Pie

The second I saw this recipe I knew - this is going to be the best apple pie in the Universe. So I made it, twice bigger than the original recipe says ;) And I was perfectly right :) I had quite a lot of it, all the guests were smitten with it, I gave some 'takeaway' portions and I was receiving calls and txt messages with compliments and asks for the recipe for the entire afternoon ;)

So, here, again, bravo for KS for another wonderful recipe!

I changed the original recipe, I've added more margarine, thanks to this change it has absolutely different taste and is way better, believe me!

Ingredients:

Dough:

• 6 glasses of flour
• 12 tablespoons of powdered sugar
• 2 pinches of salt
• 345g of butter
• 235g of margarine
• optionally - if the dough isn't sticky enough - add a little water

Filling:

• 1800g of apples (cut into a little bit thicker slices)
• 900g of pineapple (fresh or tinned, cut into small pieces) 
• 1/2 glass of brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
• 1 vanilla sugar
• 2 packagings (40g each) of vanilla powdered budyń (or 1/2 glass of potato starch)
• a handful of almond flakes or shredded coconut

Optionally:

• filling: a handful of raisins (of course if You like raisins, add as much as You like, though not more than 1 glass)
• top: 1 beaten egg to spread on the top, before baking
• top: powdered sugar, to sprinkle the top of the cake, after baking

Preparation:

Dough:

1. Take a big bowl, sieve flour and powdered sugar inside, add salt as well as butter and margarine cut into small pieces. Knead or mix till everything links (especially butter and margarine). If the dough isn't sticky enough and You can't form a ball, add a little water.
2. Divide the dough into 2 pieces, cover with foil and put in the fridge for an hour.
3. During that time, prepare a suitable baking pan (around 30x40 cm) - grease it and cover with baking paper. Also, during that time, prepare the filling.

Filling:

1. Wash, peel, cut the apples (cut out the kernels and throw away) and put in a big pot or bowl. 
2. Do the same with the pineapple and mix with apples.
3. Optionally, add raisins to the same pot/bowl and mix.
4. Add sugar, cinnamon, vanilla sugar and budyń/potato starch and mix precisely.

Baking:

1. Start preheating the oven to 190C.
2. Take the first part of the dough, distribute all over the bottom of the baking pan and its sides.
3. Add mixed filling.
4. Sprinkle with almond flakes or shredded coconut.
5. Take the second part of the dough from the fridge and - either make a crumble or roll out the pastry thinly and cover the cake or roll out the dough thinly, cut into stripes and make a chequered pattern.
6. Optionally - beat 1 egg and distribute all over the top.
7. If the oven is ready, put the cake inside and bake for 70 minutes till golden brown.
8. If the top or bottom is getting too dark and isn't ready - cover the top with a piece of foil and the bottom, for example with baking tray.
9. Take out from the oven and serve for instance with powdered sugar on the top or with some vanilla ice cream.
10. Bon Appetit! :)

Tart Tatin

I've hardly made a picture of that cake! I would say it's the second best cake I've ever eaten after Gourmet Sensation. Deriving from France, Tart Tatin is a cake for a fans of 'wet' cakes with lots of fruit and little dough. Very sweet, thanks to caramel and very fruity, thanks to soft apples with a scent of cinnamon. Fantastic and absolutely mouth-watering, if you're willing to take up a challange and give it a try :) I do recommend! :) 

This is Pascal Brodnicki's recipe.

Before baking:

• Do not use springform cake tin to prepare it, because the apple juice + butter-sugar mixture will leak, while heating on the stove as well as in the oven so the tart won't be prepared adequately and overturning will be a disaster.
• Choose only big, round, beautiful apples, with no spots.

Ingredients:

Dough:

• 200g of flour
• 20g of sugar
• pinch of salt
• 100g of butter, cut into cubes (soft, in a room temperature)
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 tablespoons of water

Apples:

• 6 big, beautiful, round apples
• 150g of sugar
• 150g of butter
• 1-2 teaspoons of cinnamon

Optional:

• vanilla ice cream
• mint leaves

Preparation:

Dough:

1. Take a mixer and its bowl. Put flour, sugar, salt, butter and egg yolk inside. Mix/knead till the dough is formed. While mixing add water.
2. When the dough is formed, cover the cake with foil and put inside the fridge for around 30 minutes.

Apples:

1. Choose big apples in a similar size. Wash and peel all them, cut and throw away the kernels. Cut into wedges (or so-called 'boats' ;) around 8 pieces/1 apple)
2. Take a tray, put it on the stove. Add butter, melt it on a very low heat. Add sugar, stir.
3. Boil, for a quite long time, keep stiring, till it starts getting gold, to prepare a caramel (be very very careful with that, it's extremely hot, do not taste it during preparing and do not touch!). Turn  it off, put aside for 5-10 minutes.
4. Choose the most beautiful apple wedges, start putting them on the tray, making a round pattern, like a fan, putting one piece slightly on another one, starting from the edge of the tray, to the centre of the tray. This first layer is very important, it needs to be done really precisely, because after all, this is the top of the cake. Sprinkle the first layer with cinnamon. Put another layer, sprinkle with cinnamon, etc. till all the apple wedges are used.
5. On a very low heat, start boiling it again, covered with a lid, for around 5 minutes till the caramel covers either only the first one or all of the apple layers.
6. Take out from the stove.

Cake:

1. Take the cake from the fridge, roll out on sprinkled with flour kitchen's surface and put it on the top of the apples. Edges which are too long roll inside.
2. Tn the middle of the cake dough make a small hole, a 'chimney'.
3. Put in the oven for around 20-25 minutes till the top is gold.
4. Take it out from the oven, let it cool down a little. (around 10 min.)
5. Using a knife, cut it out from the tray.
6. Put a big plate on it, hold it tight and very quickly overturn.
7. Gently take the tart out of the tray.
8. Serve for example with vanilla ice cream and mint leaves.
9. Bon Appetit!! :)

Sweet Semolina

Sweet semolina could be the second name of (dessert) simplicity. This timeless and delightful dessert will always satisfy both children and adult's palates :) Honestly, there is no sophisticated recipe, if you have never tried it, this is a must-try!
Recipe from... genes? I have no idea... :) it's like preparing cornflakes for breakfast :)

Ingredients:

• 800ml of milk
• 110g of semolina(or farina, or grit)

Additionals:

• caramelized apples*
• cheery (or other) jam
• almonds
• .... :)

Preparation:

1. Prepare around 6 dessert bowls.
2. Take a clean pot, put all the milk inside, start heating on a low heat, not to burn the milk.
3. When milk starts boiling, gradually start adding the semolina, stiring energetically all the time, to avoid lumps.
4. Boil for around 2-3 more minutes, then distribute prepared grit to all the dessert bowls. 
5. Put chosen additionals on the top of every dessert bowl.
6. Bon Appetit!

*How to prepare caramelized apples?

Ingredients:

• 3-4 apples (usually 1 apple per 1 person is enough)
• 2 tablespoons of water
• 1-2 tablespoons of brown sugar
• 1-2 teaspoons of cinnamon

Preparation:

1. Wash the apples, peel and cut into wedges.
2. Take a pot, put water and apples inside, start heating.
3. After 3-5 minutes add sugar and cinnamon. Stir from time to time.
4. Boil for another 5 minutes.* Turn off the heat.
5. Bon Appetit! :)

* The longer the apples are boiling the softer they become and they start falling into very small pieces.

Apple Pancakes

Old recipe, delicious meal. It is a little bit different way to prepare pancakes, especially, if you have too many apples in your basket :) It might be prepared in 2 ways: the dough + apple slices or the dough + grated apples :) both fantastic! and the second version is much better for children :) It might be served with many, many different additionals, which is its another big advantage :)
Recipe comes straight from '(Grand)Mum's kitchen' :) 

Ingredients:

• around 5-8 apples (grated apples/apples slices)
• 500 ml of milk
• around 300 g of flour
• 1-3 tablespoons of sugar
• 16 g of vanilla sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder (optional, but with it, they will grow, become more fluffy)

Additional ingredients: (top of the pancakes):

• Whipped cream
• Cinnamon
• Chocolate/caramel/fruit syrup
• Maple syrup
• Powdered sugar
• Golden syrup
• Marmalade
• Honey
• ..... :)

Preparation:

1. Take a big bowl. Put grated apples inside (or its slices). Put aside.
2. Take another big bowl. Put milk, flour, sugars, egg and baking powder inside, stir till smooth.
3. Mix with apples.
4. Take a frying pan, put some oil on it, start heating, on a very low heat.
5. Put some dough with apples on the frying pan (if slices - one slice per one pancake), distribute the dough on the frying pan, as with a classic pancake, fry for few minutes on each side (check the colour from time to time - when gold - overturn).
6. Dry on a paper towel (if you wish to filter the oil), put on a plate, sprinkle/decorate with your favourite additionals.
7. Bon Appetit! :)

Italian Torta Margherita

Very easy and tasty cake. Last minute idea, when you have a craving for a cake ;)The only thing I needed to buy to prepare it was a greek yoghurt ;) So the cost of preparing it is automatically low too :) Recipe comes from all over the Internet, containing some Italian websites (for example: ricette.giallozafferano.it , emikodavies.com) :)

Ingredients:

• 300 g of greek yoghurt
• 300 g of sugar
• 3 eggs
• 150 g of oil
• 600 g of flour
• 2 teaspoons of baking powder
• 16 g of vanilla sugar
• 200-500 g of fruit - plums, apples, nectarine, pear (preffered harder ones, not very juicy)
• some butter
• powdered sugar or icing sugar

Optional ingredients:

• 2-3 teaspoons zest of a lemon (optional)
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Preparation:

1. Wash, peel and chop the fruit into wedges.
2. Start heating the oven to 200C.
3. Take a big bowl.
4. Put yoghurt and sugar inside, add eggs and stir. Add oil and stir again.
5. Add flour, baking powder and optional ingredients (if desired). Stir everything.
6. Add fruit and stir again.
7. Take a springform cake tin (though I used fluted cake ring) grease it thoroughly.
8. Put the dough in a tin and bake for 30-40 minutes in 200C.*
9. Check, by using a toothpick if the cake is ready (put the toothpick as deep as possible, to get sure).
10. Take it out from the oven, cool down, then overturn the cake and by tapping, take it out from the form.
11. Sprinkle with powdered sugar or icing sugar.
12. Bon Appetit! :)

* The top of the cake may start getting burnt very fast because the oven is already preheated. To prevent your cake, when you notice it starts burning, put a piece of foil on the entire top of the cake. 

A method for a night's hunger nightmare

There are days (especially during the summer) when you can eat absolutely nothing during the entire day, but when the evening starts you could devour a horse. And simultaneously you want to stay fit and not put on weight. How to combat that urgent need? 

Here is your answer...

this particular smoothie is my own idea

Ingredients:

• 1 apple
• 150-200g of strawberries
• 2 teaspoons of lemon juice

Optional ingredients:

• ice

Preparation:

1. Wash, peel and chop the apple. Put aside.
2. Wash the strawberries, throw away the green tops/hats.
3. Put the strawberries in a food processor. Blend till smooth. 
4. Now you can add 2-3 ice cubes if you want to. Blend till smooth.
5. Add a few pieces of chopped apple. Blend till smooth. Repeat the actions till all the chopped pieces of apples are blended.
6. Add lemon juice.
7. Bon appetit :)

This particular smoothie, if not blended for too long is really thick and what comes after that - very filling. You will probably need a spoon to eat it ;)